Coming off a contentious election, and with the next legislative session just around the corner, it’s easy to get caught in the negative side of politics. It’s easy to build up political divides and play into an “us versus them” mentality – which then only breeds more anger, disconnection and gridlock.

These barriers aren’t just in Washington, D.C. or at the state Capitol. They are deeper than that. Liberals often feel like conservatives ignore urban areas, devalue diversity and simply “don’t care.” While conservatives often feel like liberals have forgotten rural areas, downplay traditional values, and advocate for the tolerance of everyone – except for the people they disagree with.

To put it simply: too many people simply don’t feel valued. Instead, they feel looked down upon – or worse yet, ignored.

As Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute, points out, “We need to need people that are not like us.” Too often, we either dismiss people who are not like us – or we make it our mission to “help” them.

When I was a teacher, it would have been easy to believe that the students growing up in tough circumstances “needed” me. In reality, I needed them. Not only did they teach me important lessons, but they also had so much to offer society. So when our education system fails certain children, it also fails our state and our nation.

In Colorado, we need every person to reach their potential. We are better off when everyone has opportunity. We also need diversity. We need different views, perspectives and experiences. And we need a competitive economy where everyone has a shot to not only contribute, but to excel.

If you asked my dad who he learned more from: his grandfather, who worked as a janitor, or his Ivy League professors, he would probably laugh. He had great professors, but his grandfather was the one that showed him what it meant to work hard, in a way that nobody else could. His grandfather taught him that his reputation was far more important than his position.

Everyone has something to offer. And if you travel the entire state, you will find amazing people doing all kinds of different jobs. We need all of them.

So this upcoming session, Colorado has the opportunity to be a model for the country. When Crisanta Duran was picked to be speaker of the House, she passionately spoke about making sure that we don’t leave any Coloradans behind – regardless of their race, class or geographical location. There’s no doubt that Senate President Kevin Grantham agrees.

This, of course, doesn’t mean that there won’t continue to be big policy disagreements. We may never agree on Obamacare or fracking – and that’s OK. Disagreement is healthy – as long as it’s civil.

The important thing is that we value everyone’s opinion and unique experiences. And that we commit to working on the things that we can agree on. Too often, one policy battle bleeds into the next – and payback takes precedent over working together in those areas of agreement.

When I worked briefly for U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi of Wyoming, he would often talk about all the things he got done with Sen. Ted Kennedy. Enzi was one of the most conservative senators, while Kennedy was one of the most liberal. When somebody asked him how they got so much accomplished together, Sen. Enzi said, “We knew that we completely disagreed on 20 percent of things, so we decided to just focus on the other 80 percent.”

Looking forward to this upcoming session, we all have an opportunity to help bridge the divide and work together on solutions that provide more opportunity for all Coloradans. I’m confident that Coloradans will respond well to the challenge.